


Episode Five: Handsome Jack's Helios Of Horrors!

by NessieFromSpace



Series: Through Thick and Thin, Sickness and Health [5]
Category: Borderlands, The Tales From The Borderlands
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Gaige and Timothy are just too cute!, Good dad! Jack, Halloween, Halloween Special!, Jack does not have commitment issues, Jack is proud of his relatioship with Rhys, M/M, Pumpkin carving, The kiddos try to scare Jack, They have to make it through Jack's Helios of Horror first, domestic AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-28
Updated: 2016-10-28
Packaged: 2018-08-27 14:35:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8405422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NessieFromSpace/pseuds/NessieFromSpace
Summary: While searching through the boxes of Halloween decorations and costumes, the kiddos decide to try their hand at scary the Master of Fear, Handsome Jack himself. It won't be easy, since they must first trek up thirty flights of horror themed hallways before they can reach Handsome Jack. This is a little Halloween gift!





	

**Author's Note:**

> There's no smooth way to place the pictures and make it all cool and professional, at least, none that I know of. So, I'm just going to put the links to the pictures of what each of their pumpkins were based from.
> 
> Handsome Jack: http://nessiewithink.tumblr.com/post/152437943515/a-pic-i-found-on-the-web-to-reference-handsome
> 
> Rhys: http://nessiewithink.tumblr.com/post/152437854860/a-pic-i-found-on-the-web-that-references-rhys
> 
> Angel: http://nessiewithink.tumblr.com/post/152437917020/a-pic-from-the-web-to-reference-angels-pumpkin
> 
> Gaige: http://nessiewithink.tumblr.com/post/152437979260/a-pic-from-the-web-to-reference-gaiges-pumpkin
> 
> Timothy: http://nessiewithink.tumblr.com/post/152437666195

Rhys smiled at the dining room table and was happy that there was no carpet there. This kids, Angel, Gaige, and Timothy, were carving pumpkins and it was getting really messy. However, not nearly as messy as Jack’s pumpkin. He was scooping the guts out in a very hap-hazard way that was spraying bits of pumpkin all over, even reaching to the carpet. Rhys frowned and laid down newspapers. He knew he’d be the one cleaning up after this and he really didn’t want to. He wanted to enjoy carving his pumpkin.

When the newspaper covered a good portion near the dining area, Rhys found himself making a path to the bathroom in case any of them had to use it. He then, was finally able to go to where his pumpkin waited.

Jack smiled and caught Rhys before he could get to his area. With a slimey hand, he took hold of Rhys’ chin and planted a kiss on him. Rhys winced away, not so much liking the texture. “Jack, no, you’re slimey.”

A large smirk appeared on his face and Rhys silently groaned. “It’s never stopped you before,” Jack said.

Gaige cackled. Timothy blushed and Angel ignored them, her concentration all on her pumpkin. Rhys rolled his eyes and found a rag to wipe his face with. He was happy though, that Jack had taken the time from destroying something to kiss him. With a content smile, Rhys finally got to his pumpkin. Sketched on it in pencil was a traditional face pattern and he'd planned to put a white candle inside. Rhys was pretty sure Timothy was planning the same thing, but seemed to be having difficulty carving it. Gaige had blueprints out next to her with tools, her Deathtrap hovering next to her.  She eyed it and then eyed her plans, biting her lip. Tim slipped as he carved, a furious blush spreading as he focused on his own pumpkin with intense focus. Rhys smiled, adoring the young love. Angel caught his eye, her smile mirroring his. Gaige was clueless, her tongue curling in concentration.

An hour and a half later, Rhys took a step back and looked at his work. It wasn't bad at all, if he did say so himself. He looked up and almost gasped. Staring at him was a robot with a creepy smiling pumpkin on its head. Its red eyes lit the pumpkin, making it look menacing. Gaige was admiring her work. She reached up on her tiptoes to reach the jack-o-lantern, when she couldn’t reach, she climbed onto a chair. Then she adjusted the pumpkin, centering it.

She nodded in approval. “Perfect! You’re gorgeous, Deathtrap! Simply marvelous!” she spoke with a snobbish accent. “Don’t you think so Tim Tam?”

Tim flinched when he saw it, but smiled and gave her a thumbs up. “He looks… wicked!”

Gaige beamed at him. She turned and saw Angel still carving hers. It was a carving of the painting The Starry Night and it was amazing. Gaige’s eyes widened. “Damn!”

“Hey!” Jack cut in, his concentration still on his pumpkin. “No swearing in my house.”

Gaige’s lids lowered, her expression unimpressed. She turned to Timothy and looked at his work. It was… Pitiful. Crooked and not very well carved. There was a large slash where he’d slipped earlier. Her eyes widened. “Wow, Tim Tam! That’s really good!”

His shoulders slumped. “For a toddler.”

“So what if you’re not Van Gogh over there, this is really good. You normally stop before you can finish an art piece and this time you didn't and it's really cute! Isn’t it Angel?”

By now, Timothy was blushing furiously. Angel looked away from her progress to look at Timothy’s pumpkin. Her eyes widened. “Wow. I’ve never seen artwork from you before. That’s really good Tim!”

He looked extremely skeptical.

Angel smiled. “Look, it’s like Gaige said. Don’t worry about being a fabulous artist, just focus on doing your best in the moment. You did your best work and it’s really good. It's my favorite one, sorry Pops, but it is. You should be proud that you created something.”

A smile returned to Timothy’s face. “Thanks…”

Gaige leaned forward and kissed his cheek. Timothy froze. Gaige smiled and ran off to get snacks. Timothy lightly touched his cheek. He stared at his pumpkin in contemplation.

Rhys turned quickly. “Gaige, wash your hands please before you dig through the food!”

She sighed heavily. “Fiiiiiiiiiiine!”

With his pumpkin done, Rhys set to work cleaning. Jack reached his arms around Rhys and stopped him, kissing his neck. “Don’t worry about cleaning up, pumpkin, let me do it.”

“It’s okay,” Rhys said. “You’re still carving yours.”

He gripped Rhys tighter, pulling him close. “Sit. Down. Rhys.” Rhys had the urge to continue to clean. It wasn’t that he was a control freak with how to clean, he was just already in the motion and why not? He wanted it clean as they went and the sooner he cleaned the easier it would be. But, the look on Jack’s determined face, made Rhys think twice.

Jack led him back to a chair and sat him down. He pressed a kiss to Rhys’ forehead and then went back to his pumpkin. With a quick cut, he looked at it and shrugged. “Angel, can you touch this up for me?”

Angel nodded.

Jack went to the kitchen and washed himself of pumpkin and came back to clear all the innards off the table and threw them away. As he passed, he made quick stops, kissing Rhys as he went. Rhys couldn’t help but smile. Angel finished her pumpkin as Jack began to clear her area, scraping the shavings into the trashcan he pulled with him. Angel went to Jack’s pumpkin and looked it over. She grabbed her set of carving tools and busied herself.

Rhys sighed happily.

Gaige ran in with a large bowl of popcorn, chips and a bag of caramel apple suckers. She set them down noisily on the table and gave Timothy the bag of candy. “Here! Happy Halloween! I know they’re your favorite, so I bought them for you!”

Timothy’s face lit up. “Wow!” he ripped open the bag and unwrapped one, plopping it into his mouth. “Thank you! This is amazing! You’re the best!” His smile was twice as wide now and it made Rhys warm with fuzziness. He liked when the people he cared about were happy.

Angel set her tools down and let her breath out, satisfied with her work. She set to cleaning her tools in the sink. Jack looked at his pumpkin again. “Wicked! It’s very metal!”

Gaige frowned at his words.

“What?” he asked. “It’s very metal! It’s scary!”

“Yeah, but metal isn’t used like that anymore, if it ever was.”

He glared at her. “Hey, I’m hip on the lingo you kiddos use today. I’m Handsome Frickin’ Jack. Handsome Frickin’ Jack is a cool cool cat!” He danced a little, waving his hips and arms to resemble a wave in the ocean.

Gaige rested her face in her hand, shaking her head.

Jack turned to Rhys, waving his way over to him. “You think I’m a cool cool cat, don’t you Rhysie?”

“The coolest,” Rhys smirked. Jack bent down and kissed him. “Now,” Rhys said, “Why don’t we start on dinner? I also have some Red Velvet Cake for dessert.”

* * *

Without school in session, Tim and Gaige stayed at Angel’s house most of the days. Gaige went home for a few days in between, but for the most part they were inseparable as always. Tim stayed at Angel’s house, helping with decorations and dinner.

Tim was helping Angel sort through large boxes of halloween decorations and materials. They were trying to find a costume for Tim when Gaige burst through the front door, yanking her personal key out of it and letting it slam loudly behind her. Jack had given both her and Tim keys. Mainly so Gaige would stop breaking into his house and the not tell him how she’d done it. The other part was so Tim always had a place to be, especially when his Uncle raged.

“I’m back!” she sang loudly.

“We’re in the back room!” Angel called.

Gaige skipped into the bedroom, twirling around the bed frame. “I’m back! Did you miss me?” she flopped dramatically over the bed, her top half drooping over the side facing the two. She posed her legs in a burlesque fashion. “You did, didn’t you?”

Angel laughed. “Of course! Tim kept asking when you’d be here.”

Tim blushed furiously. “Angel!” he threw a wig at her.

Gaige let her feet dangle over her head and rolled to her feet. She tucked and rolled again on the floor so her head rested on Tim’s lap. His eyes were wide, startled and embarrassed. She smiled at him. “I missed you too Tim Tam!” She turned and draped across his legs. “So, what are you two doing?” Tim’s face turned even more red.

Angel pretended not to notice. “We’re looking for a costume for Tim.”

“Oooh! Sounds fun!” Gaige stretched across Timothy and rifled through a box. Timothy’s face couldn’t get more flushed and nervous. He didn’t know where to rest his hands, he looked down at Gaige wholly unsure.

Angel, taking pity on him, pointed to Gaige’s back and smiled.

Timothy smiled awkwardly and very hesitantly rested his arms on her back. Gaige made no comment or move. His shoulders relaxed a little. The smile on Gaige’s face widened a little as she pulled a mask out and looked at it.

She frowned though. “What the hell is this?”

Angel shrieked, covering her mouth and looking away. “Put it away! Put it away!”

Confused, Gaige tossed it back in the box. “What’s up?”

“Uugh! Pop always-  _ always _ \- used to scare me with that mask! Ugh! OF course he still has it!”

“He used to scare you?” Gaige asked, eyeing the mask.

“Yeah, every year during the month of October and always on a different day, so I never knew when to expect it!”

Suddenly, Gaige popped up, her hands standing on Timothy’s leg. Timothy’s hands shot away from her, his face flushing once more. “WE SHOULD SCARE HIM!”

Angel frowned. “What?”

Gaige’s eyes were wild. “We should scare your Pops! He’s always the one scaring people and not just in the literal sense, doesn’t he totally suit Helios up for Halloween?”

“Yeah and personally goes around and scares people. The only person he doesn’t scare is Dad, but only because Dad cried once because he got so startled and it about killed Pop.”

“Let’s do it!” Gaige said. “We’ll find him when he’s at lunch and scare him with this mask! I can be the one to do it if you don’t like the mask. WAIT! No! I have an even better plan!”

* * *

The plan was a-go. Gaige spent the days before Halloween, perfecting her plan. She was quiet with concentration, determined to scare the Master of Fear. She worked the plan over and over, talking with Angel about what to expect in Helos.

“You’re really pumped for this?” Angel asked as they finally entered the lobby of Helios the day before Halloween. They all slowed to a standstill as they looked all around them. It was covered and layered with cheap Halloween decorations. It was a disaster.

Gaige quirked a brow. “I was… This… This is it?”

Angel smirked. “It’s my Pops, Gaige, he loves to mess with your mind. Sure,  _ this _ looks horrible and cheap, but that’s because it’s supposed to. Just wait until we get to the next floor. I should warn you, there are stairs on both sides of the building, but he blocks every other door, so we have to go across the buildings and through the scary stuff to move about. He also closes down the elevators, so everyone has to take the stairs and experience the horror.”

Gaige’s eyes opened wide. “Woah!” And then, they turned that sparkly crazy again and her smile widened. “Yeah! Let’s do this!”

“I… I d-don’t know…” Tim said, pulling on the strings of his backpack. They had all packed their packs full of food, drinks and the rest of their equipment. “I… I just don’t like scary stuff.”

Gaige, wrapped her arm around him. “Don’t you worry, Tim Tim! I’ll keep you safe!”

He nodded, but didn’t look quite convinced. Gaige hugged his arm tight and he smiled a little.

Angel took his other arm. “Besides, you’ve got me here, and I’m pretty good at guessing my Pop’s patterns, and hey, we’ll take some breaks if it gets too much to handle.”

He nodded, reassured by their strength.

“Okay! Let’s do this! I’m so pumped! I’m gonna kick so much ass!”Gaige said, dragging the two with her. They entered the stairs and found that they were plain and untouched.

“A palate cleanser, I bet,” Angel said. “From floor to floor.”

Gaige rubbed her hands. “I can’t wait! I’m gonna rock this!”

Slowly, they opened the door to a large hallway that looked like an old, worn house. It was dark and musty. Candles lined the walls and a fog covered the ground. The three stood there, looking at it.

“Haunted house,” Angel whispered.

“R-right,” Gaige said. She leaned in close to Tim, hugging him to her.

Everything was silent, their breathing the only thing they could hear. Their words seemed to echo around them. Angel took a step forward and paused. Nothing happened. She waved for Gaige and Timothy to follow. Gaige shook her head furiously. Her eyes were large and she cowered against Timothy.

Timothy looked at Gaige and then looked ahead. He gently pulled Gaige, who stumbled, but followed. She clung to his clothes. He wrapped his hand around hers and squeezed. “That way we can’t get separated.” He whispered, smiling.

There was a loud banging all around them. Gaige screamed, but Timothy and Angel barely jumped. Angel waited for Timothy and Gaige to reach her and they continued across the hallway. A creaking noise was heard, making Gaige jumped and squeeze Timothy’s hand. Suddenly, something hit the wall from the other side. They screamed and Gaige took off, pulling Timothy with her. Angel ran after them. Gaige didn’t stop until they reached the door. There she waited, bouncing on her feet, waiting for Angel to catch up.

“I’m so sorry!” she breathed. “I-I didn’t mean…”

“It’s okay, Gaige,” Angel said. She gave her a reassuring smile. Until something brushed past Angel under the fog. Angel screamed, jumping away from whatever it was and running through the door, holding it open for the two to follow. 

She slammed the door shut, leaning against it and breathing heavily. “Pop is such a sadistic jerk.”

Gaige breathed in heavily, leaning on her knees. “Oh, shit… I’m so… I need,” she wheezed. “I need to exercise more.”

Angel smiled and was soon laughing. Gaige, followed, wheezing as she did. Soon, and very slowly, Timothy began to smile and he started to laugh. “I… I can’t believe we have twenty-nine more to go through.”

Gaige’s laughter stopped. “Oh.. Oh shit!”

Angel sighed. “I don’t think it’s different on every level, I think a lot of them are just continuations because Pop gets so many ideas for each theme and he switches it up every year.”

Gaige deflated. “We have more floors of that?” she pointed to where they’d just been.

“Yeah.”

“Screw this!” she shook her head. “I want out. This is stupid, let’s just go home.”

Angel looked at her, listening and breathing, her emotions unclear. Timothy, however frowned though. “You’re gonna give up on the first floor? I’ve never seen you give up before.”

Gaige breathed. “It’s just… I can’t…”

“Not even if I’m with you?” Timothy asked.

That made Gaige think for a moment. She looked at Timothy and then nodded, smiling. “I… I think I could do anything as long as you’re with me, Tim Tam.”

Timothy smiled. “Good,” he took her hand again and began to trek up the stairs. Angel followed, wishing she’d recorded their cute moment so she could show Gaige later and make her see that she was totally in love with Timothy. It wasn't that she was in denial, it was that she was completely clueless, which was even more frustrating.

They came to the next door and Gaige stopped in her tracks, not wanting to open the door. Angel moved around them and braced against it, waiting for confirmation to open it. Timothy nodded. She pushed through, keeping it open until the others were through. It closed quickly behind them.

Gaige jumped and clutched to Timothy. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, holding her to him. They walked slowly. Angel looked around them and then skeptically at the fog that floated again at their knees.

“This has to be against code,” she said to herself.

“That’s all you can think of at a time like this!?” Gaige demanded.

Angel shrugged. “I’m dead inside.”

The lights began to flicker and they heard a scream. It split across them and then faded into a groan. Gaige hid her face against Timothy. Then there was something that sounded like nails scratching wood. It was getting louder, closer to them.

Gaige sped her pace, pulling Timothy with her. This was repeated until they had all passed through the doors on the third floor. Gaige leaned against Timothy. “Th-that wasn’t… As bad…”

They all jumped when there was a banging on the door, followed by groans. Frowning, Angel kicked at the door, hard. “Come in and get me if you’re so tough!” she yelled to the other side, kicking the door again.

“Angel!” Gaige whined.

“They can’t hurt us, Gaige, it's purely here to mess up our minds.”

Gaige shook her head and pulled Timothy away and up the stairs.

The next level looked like a clinic. There were white tiled floors, white walls, but it wasn’t a hospital. When they opened the door, Gaige almost screamed. She hid behind Timothy fully, clutching onto his shirt. “Nope. No way.”

“An asylum,” Angel said.

There were people, slowly walking or standing in the expanse of the hall. Gaige shook her head. “We’ve… This is the first time we’ve encountered actual people.”

“They can’t hurt us, Gaige,” Angel said again.

“Besides, they’ll have to get through me,” Timothy said.

That was comforting to her and she leaned into him. “Thank you, Tim Tim.”

Timothy smiled.

Angel lead the group again. She could hear them whispering and lurching this way and that. It did startle her a little, but she wasn’t scared. Not like Gaige. She clung to Timothy, looking at either side of them, her eyes wide and searching. Timothy walked confidently, something neither of them had ever seen before.

One of the people yelled and ran to another one, attacking them. Gaige shrieked and Timothy hugged her close, moving her away. There was suddenly a mob, attacking each other. The lights went out. Gaige screamed and Angel reached for her, squeezing intermittently to let her know it was her. She calmed and they were lead through the hall and through the door, where Angel swore.

There were “patients” here too. Someone was in the corner, a straight-jacket on them. They rocked back and forth rambling and staring at them. Two people slowly drifted up the stairs, while three others sat on them.

The man in the straight-jacket muttered loudly. “You’re dead, dead, DEAD said the worm to the sky and shot them dead! DEAD!”

Another yelled for him to shut up as they held their hands over their ears.

Angel didn’t let go of Gaige’s hand and lead them through the people, determined. Gaige whined, but kept her eyes straight ahead.

A man leaned into Timothy. “Which one is poisoned?” he began to laugh.

Timothy did not flinch or blink, but continued forward.

“DON’T IGNORE ME!” he called. “Which one is poisoned! It’s you isn’t it!?”

But Timothy continued.

Gaige eyed him. “Are you okay?”

He nodded. “My Uncle’s scarier than that guy.”

They were silent.

When they were through the door, they took a moment to stop and look ahead of them. The asylum had turned darker. The floor was concrete and the walls were stone. The halls were empty, except for two cowering employees in the corner.

“Oh!” Gaige said, startled.

Angel smiled at them. “Hello, do you need help getting through here?”

They looked at her hopefully. “We hate Halloween!”

Angel smiled sympathetically. “I hear that Handsome Jack guy is a real jerk.”

They nodded, but then shook their head.

She smiled. “You can be honest with me, I don’t work for him. He won’t hear it from any of us. Promise.”

The nodded and stood, their eyes darting all around them. Angel lead the way, making sure not to abandon anyone.

“You’re the first people we’ve come across.” Angel noticed how quiet it was and began to worry.

“M-m-most try to stay in their offices all day. Or-or they don’t come at all, but there’s already the maximum gone and we’re all stuck here.”

“Does he decorate your offices?” she asked.

“No, thank God! But he always picks a day where there are meetings, so everyone is running around to prepare for them.”

“Sounds like something he’d do.”

They heard a scratching sound. It sounded like metal against the floor. Behind them, was a woman walking towards them, dragging her long, chained shackles. She was dirty and glared at them. The two employees began to panic.

“It’s okay,” Angel said.

“Y-yeah… They… They can’t hurt us, right?” Gaige asked.

“Exactly,” Timothy said.

They heard the same dragging ahead of them. It was a man, just as dirty as the woman, glaring and watching them. They stayed in a close crowd as the man passed, his head turning and staring as he walked by. When he did, they sped to the exit. Once through it, they looked for more patients and weren’t surprised to find them.

“I thought you said this was supposed to be a palate cleansing!?” Gaige whined.

“Well, like Handsome Jack does anything consistent,” Angel protested. “It probably is, but he just couldn’t resist.”

The crossing was just as stiff and nervous as the last, especially with the anxiety of the employees. They waded through the crowd and made it to the next floor without incident. When they reached the last floor, they saw the two off and continued on their way.

They continued on, reaching the next theme and finding it to be a graveyard. With real dirt on the floor and real tombstones. Figures knelt by them, scooping entrails out of dead bodies and eating them. They turned as the three passed, growling or lurching at them, blood dripping from their mouths. The stairways were back to being empty and they took a moment to rest and have a snack and a drink. And then they were back at it, making their way past graves with bells. They began to ring, the sound was overwhelming as it echoed off the walls. The mounds began to move, as though someone was banging on them.

“Holy shit!” Gaige gasped.

“It’s not real, remember?” Angel said.

Gaige nodded, but still jumped when there was banging from one.

The following theme was drastically different. It was a hotel. It was bright and blinding as they stepped out of the stairwell. The wallpaper sagged from the wall.

“Wh… What…?” Gaige whispered.

Angel and Timothy shared a glance. They knew what to expect. Screams from the rooms, blood from the walls, maybe even two twins at the end of the hall. What they didn’t expect was to hear a chainsaw and look back to see Handsome Jack running at them.

Screams left them as they booked it for the end. The door wouldn’t open.

“What do you mean it won’t open!?” Gaige shoved them aside to try the door handle. It shook, but would not budge. She screamed at the door, and still nothing. It wasn’t until Handsome Jack was five feet away that the door finally opened, swinging violently as they all fell in. Angel slammed it shut on Handsome Jack.

They collapsed, breathing hard. “Y-your Pop-”

“That wasn’t him. He didn’t recognize me. He would have said something or started laughing. That must have been one of his many doppelgangers.”

“Next time I have a brilliant idea like this, duct tape my mouth and then handcuff me to something so I can’t follow through with the stupid thing!”

The two nodded. “Can we get that in writing?”

The rest were the things Angel and Timothy had originally expected, screaming in agony, blood oozing down the walls, and two twins at the end of the hall. Therefore, they were able to move through easily, taking another short break on the stairs before continuing.

As they entered the next floor, Gaige looked at the others. “What kind of fresh, idiotic hell are we going to be forced to endure this time?”

Music reached them and Gaige turned, seeing an entrance to a circus. “The Circus Is In Town! The Hyperion Circus!”

Gaige shook her head. “Oh, hell no. I’m not dealing with clowns!”

“Where’s Angel?” Timothy asked.

They looked around, but didn’t see her. They retreated back into the stairwell and found her looking at the blockade. It was a thick wall that had descended from the ceiling. She was testing its thickness and fortitude. She then looked to the side, over the railing, seeing how far it was.

“Don’t even think about it!” Gaige snapped, startling Angel.

“What!? I- I… I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Gaige crossed her arms. “I know what fear looks like, you’re talking to me here. I peed myself like ten floors ago and haven’t really stopped since.”

Timothy frowned. “We could have stopped at a bathroom.”

“My point is, you’re scared.”

“I… I am not! I just… I’m getting tired and I was trying to find a second way up there.”

“You could have done that floors ago, but you haven’t until this one.” Gaige’s arms were crossed.

“It didn’t occur to me!”

“That’s crap. You’re the smartest person I know, your brain is practically a computer, and you didn’t think about it, until the fourteenth floor?”

“It’s okay to be scared Angel, that’s what you’re always telling people,” Timothy said quietly.

The girls stopped and looked at him. Angel sighed. “I… You’re right, it’s just… I usually have to be the calm and collected one.”

“We won’t tell anyone, especially not your Pops,” Timothy said, smirking.

Angel nodded, smiling a little. She went back to the door and Gaige grabbed her hand, squeezing it. Timothy opened the door and held it for them. Angel drug her heels, but she moved. They waited for Timothy and as a group walked under the sign.

A man appeared. “Welcome! To Hell!” he laughed loudly, making Angel wince and hide away between the other two. The man caught this. “What’s the matter, sweet bird? Not afraid of little ol’ me are you?”

Gaige thrust her body in his direction. “I will go crazy on you.”

“Oh, ho ho! You are one feisty thing!” the man laughed.

They walked past him.

“If you can’t handle me, little bird, you will not be prepared for what comes next!” He called, his voice full of laughter.

Gaige flipped him off.

“Don’t listen to that creepo, Angel.”

Angel was hugging herself with her free arm. “He’s right though.”

“Well, you aren’t alone,” Timothy reminded her. “It’s time for us to be here for you.”

“Thanks guys.”

They continued, but when a woman stepped out with a large python wrapped around her, they all jumped back. The woman laughed at them, kissing the snake and putting it close to them as they passed. Angel shivered, avoiding eye contact. Another woman, who was bent over and around herself smiled upside down at them.

“Don’t leave me! My body’s broken.”

They hurried away from her and through the door. Angel ran to the stairs, the railing between her and the door. She bent over on the stairs. She was silent as she caught her breath.

“This… Is… Such…”

“Bullshit?” Gaige asked.

Angel nodded. She stood and went to the next door. “C’mon, I want to get this over with as soon as possible.”

But the next floor was clowns. Clowns of all sorts, laughing and mocking them. They lunged at the three, laughing when they were startled. They didn’t speak until they exited the third floor of the set, where it was backstage and people were in cages or torn and bleeding. When they finally reached the end, they slowly made their way to the next door.

“This… This is a lot of crap to go through,” Gaige said. The others nodded.

“It’s getting very wearisome.”

“When should we stop and eat lunch?” Timothy asked.

“Not hungry,” Angel said.

“Yeah, after that, I don’t have the stomach anymore.”

Timothy nodded. They were silent.

The next floor was normal. Completely normal. Too normal. There were no decorations, nothing. They waded through, unsure and jumpy. Gaige held onto Timothy again, looking all around her.

“I don’t like this,” she said.

“I know, something’s up,” Angel said.

It was Timothy that looked behind them and shrieked. He grabbed Gaige, pulling her into his arms and carrying her. He ran away, but then ran back and grabbed Angel’s hand with the one supporting Gaige’s back. Gaige had to hold onto his neck to keep from falling. Angel looked behind them as they ran. A horde of zombies stalked after them. They hadn’t even heard them sneaking up.

Timothy yanked the door open and pulled Angel inside, slamming it shut behind them. He clung to Gaige, who did not protest or attempt to get down.

Gaige stared at Timothy. “Wow… You… I didn’t know you… Were this strong…”

Angel eyed them. “No kidding.”

Timothy looked at Gaige, smirking. “Yeah, I kind of am.”

Gaige giggled. “Think you could carry me the rest of the way?”

“Until my arms fall off.”

She giggled again. Angel rolled her eyes and started up the stairs. Timothy followed, keeping Gaige in his arms. This was how they ran through the next two levels. They didn’t look back, didn’t look around at the zombies that were after them. This time, as they caught their breath on the stairs, they decided it was okay to have lunch.

As Angel munched on her sandwich, she was thoughtful. “We only have twelve floors to go.”

Gaige, who was sitting on Timothy’s lap groaned. “Are you kidding me? Ugh! This just keeps going on and oooooooon!”

The next theme was a pirate ship. The jump scares got them, but the fear factor was beginning to wane. They began to notice the details Jack had put into the decor. How was he able to get such a distinct smell? And that really looked like a real skeleton. They didn’t speak further on that part. They also commented on the really nice fabric the pirates were dressed as and questioned the validity of that. Would they have them because they liked looking fancy or because they’d stolen them, or both?

The didn’t rest on the stairwell, but kept going, no longer feeling the need to take time in between. Their heart rates didn’t need to be brought down.

The same went for the Sewer theme, and the science lab, though they took their time going through that one. Gaige was fascinated with all the creatures and abominations. She took a stroll, telling the two the science behind it all and then making notes of them for future reference. At that point Timothy and Angel rushed her off, reminding her of her request to stop her while she was ahead. She, of course, protested. This time wasn't what she meant.

The last theme, assaulted their noses with disinfectant. They cringed and then cringed again. People were sitting on benches, bloody and broken. They looked at the group as they passed, either calling for help or for them to stop staring at them. It wasn’t so much terrifying, as it was disturbing. They hurried on their way. On the second floor of this theme, they continued at a quickened pace, ignoring the screams and what looked like surgery in the middle of the hall, making them step over what looked like blood on the floor and walls. When they stepped by the person on the surgery table, it started convulsing and screaming. Gaige screamed. They had not known it was a real person.

“You assholes!” Gaige turned on them, swinging her bag.

“No, Gagie!” Angel called. “It’s not real, remember!?” But she’d already hit one of the doctors, making them stumble backwards. Timothy grabbed Gaige’s arm and the three ran for the door, not wanting to stay around. They even ran up the stairs to the last floor. They were so thankful, they forgot not to smile. Even though they were in a morgue. Slabs lined the walls, body parts hanging, exposed from their covers.

Slowly, as they passed, they sat up, their covers still hiding them. The three moved closer to each other as they walked. Behind them, the cadavers slid off their slabs and began to slowly walk to them. They sped up and reached the final door in record time.

They took a moment to smile and laugh and collapse on the stairs. “We did it!” Gaige said. “We actually did it!”

Angel laughed. “Only five more floors.”

Gaige sat up. “WHAT!? WHAT DO YOU MEAN FIVE MORE FLOORS!?!?!?!”

Angel laughed. “Relax, they aren’t haunted or whatever. Dad works on floor thirty-one, so Pops stops at thirty. He could only handle Dad crying once in his lifetime, ya know?”

“OH THANK GOD! I literally am so done, I don’t think I could even get any joy by scaring your Pops anymore.”

“What?” Timothy asked. “You’re giving up? When we’ve finally reached the end?” he frowned at Gaige. “I’m…” his eyes widened. “I think I’m disappointed…”

Gaige looked like she’d been slapped. Her eyes grew wide as she stared at Timothy. “What?” she whispered.

“I just… You spent so much time planning and hyping us up and we went through all that hell and you’re ready to just stop? It… It’s just so anti-climatic…”

Frowning, Gaige stood, hands on hips. She was almost his height for once, thanks to the stairs she was on. “I’m  _ not  _ quitting, Tim Tam! Angel’s Pop won’t know what’s happening to him! You wait and see!”

Timothy smiled down at her, still taller than her.

“Hey! Should we say hi to Dad?” Angel asked suddenly. “We could have second lunch with him.”

“Yeah!” Gaige said. She grabbed Timothy’s hands and pulled him up the stairs. Angel followed. Gaige went boldly into the hallway and then stopped halfway through, looking at Angel. “I have no idea which door to go through.”

Timothy pointed. “That one.”

She frowned. “That’s the bathroom.”

“Exactly, you’ve had to use it for a while, remember?”

She sighed, thoroughly annoyed. “Fiiiiiiiiiiine!” She stalked to the restroom, her head tilted back dramatically.

Angel leaned against the wall next to the bathroom. Timothy rested next to her. She looked up at him. “You should just tell her how you feel.”

He smiled. “Oh, c’mon, we both know she’s not interested.”

Angel quirked her brow at him. “Not interested? She faced her fears because you said you’d be there for her. It wasn’t me that convinced her, but you. She likes you, Tim Tim.”

He shrugged. “I don’t know…”

They were silent as they waited. When Gaige came out, she had a huge grin on her face. “Wow! I feel SO much better! You’re always taking care of me Tim Tam!”

Timothy smiled.

Angel lead them through a door where Rhys was working in his office. When they opened his door, Rhys tore his eyes from his computer and his face instantly lit up.

“What?” he stood and hugged Angel tightly. He moved to the other two. “What are you three doing here?” his face grew horrified. “Oh no! You should have called me! I would have gotten you so you didn’t have to go through all those horrific floors!” He took each of their faces in his hands and looked into their eyes. “You’re not permanently scarred are you!?”

Gaige shoved his hands away from her. “Relax! It was fun!”

Rhys frowned. “You are scarred.”

Angel kept herself from laughing. “We’re fine Dad. Honest. It was sorta fun testing ourselves.”

Rhys was still confused.

“We’re here to scare Pop, the Master of Fear. But we wanted to visit you first.”

Rhys smiled and ushered them further in. “Oh! Well, come and sit and be comfortable. Your… Pop… is in a meeting, so you’ll have to wait until he’s done. Are you sure you guys are alright? I know he’s ruthless when it comes to scaring people. Do you need tea or anything? A councilor?”

“Really, Dad, we’re alright.”

Rhys’ eyes widened yet again. “Oh! Oh Angel! The circus one! Are you okay? I told Jack not to put that theme in!” Rhys moved to pick up his phone. “I’m going to-”

“No!” Angel snapped. “We’re trying to scare him, remember? And besides, I’m fine, really. We all are, but I wouldn’t mind some tea.”

He nodded. “Of course!”

Gaige stuck her tongue out at the notion of tea. Angel frowned at her. They needed Rhys to calm down or he’d be fretting for a long time to come. Rhys made them all tea, choosing a chamomile and mint blend.

“So, you really think you can scare, Jack?” he asked handing Angel her cup. He came back with one for Timothy and a cherry soda for Gaige.

She drank it greedily. “Oh good! I thought I’d have to fake liking tea!”

Rhys laughed. “Why? I know you hate it.”

She shrugged. “It seemed like the only way to get you to stop worrying about us.”

Angel glared at Gaige.

Rhys laughed. “I’m going to worry about you three no matter how many cups of tea you choke down. But you all seem normal, Timothy, are you okay?”

Blushing, Timothy nodded and hid in his tea.

“Yep, you’re all normal. How about I order some food and we can use Jack’s private elevator to get it and skip all that horror. And also save them from having to traverse up here and deliver it.”

* * *

It was finally time. Angel, Gaige and Timothy left Rhys’ office to head to Jack’s. Jack would be done with his meeting in a few minutes, which would give them time to get ready. They were dressed to scare and Rhys ushered them into Jack’s private elevator so they wouldn’t freak out any of the employees.

When they entered Jack’s office, Gaige and Timothy marveled at the size and gadgets lining all the walls. They didn’t have much time before they had to get into positions. Angel hid behind the couch with Gaige, while Timothy hid in the opposite direction.

When Jack walked in and the door was shut, Gaige and Angel jumped up and screamed. “Boo!”

Jack stopped in his tracks and looked at them. “Was that supposed to scare me?”

Now that he was distracted, Timothy crept quietly behind Jack. Gaige fell dramatically over the couch, taking her mask off. “AWW! We spent all day working our way up here to scare you and you didn’t even flinch! So stuuuuupiiiiid!”

Jack smirked and shrugged. “I am the master, you know.” His eyes widened. “You went through the floors?”

“Yes! All of them!” Gaige whined.

“All of them?” Jack began to laugh. “I bet you all wet yourselves!” He laughed harder, hugging his stomach. “Oh, this is too good! I record all of it, so I can go back and watch it!”

Gaige shrugged. “It was scary, until, what, the zombies?” Her eyes lightened “Oh! Were those real creatures in the science one? I made a bunch of notes about what I thought, but I was dragged away before I could finish.” The girls did their best not to look at Timothy, who stood, somewhat bored and awkward right behind Jack. He wore the mask that scared Angel. It was a horse skull which was paired with tattered, black robes.

Jack frowned. “Are you kidding me, kiddo? You weren’t scared by that?”

Gaige shrugged. “They were really cool though. Seriously, are they real?”

Jack glared and pointed. “You’re on my list, kiddo.” He turned to go to his desk. Timothy raised his arms as Jack faced him. Jack caught Timothy out of the corner of his eye and screamed, jumping back and covering his face.

Gaige and Angel burst out in laughter as Timothy clawed half-heartedly at Jack. “Rowr. Rrr.” he growled.

Jack glared. He tugged the mask off Timothy. “Timothy! You little-” he glared at Angel and Gaige. “Which one of you put him up to this!?”

Gaige gaped. “What makes you think Timothy’s innocent!?”

Jack narrowed. “Because he’s a good kid and doesn’t have the maniacal, evil genius mind to pull a stunt like this.”

Angel shrugged. “Tim’s really smart.”

“But not evil, Princess.” He pointed at Gaige. “She’s evil, though. A cute ball of evil genius.”

A huge, triumphant smile spread over Gaige and she fanned herself. “Guilty!”

Jack looked at Timothy. “You can get out of that, ya know?”

Timothy complied and sat on the couch with the girls, sitting cross legged, his hands in his lap. Gaige hugged him from behind. “That was incredible Tim Tim! You’re right, this did brighten up my day!”

“I’m about to darken it!” Jack growled.

Angel came around the couch and blocked Jack’s view of the other two. “You know you have terrified employees? They were terrified and we had to help them because they were literally too scared to move.” She placed her hands on her hips.

Jack blinked. “Well… I only do it once a year.”

She crossed her arms. “But you don’t do it once a year, you do it for two weeks! All those scared employees who aren’t lucky enough to be on Dad’s floor or higher.”

Jack huffed. “I’m not going to stop. This is the only time I get to be creative and scare the spit out of people!”

“Fine,” Angel said. “Then make it so everyone has at least two days off to relax.”

Jack looked like he wanted to argue, but he sighed. “Fine, whatever.”

Angel smiled. “Thank you. Now, we’ll head out, you have a lot of work to do.” She ushered the two out before Jack realized that they’d left before he could yell at them more.

* * *

Jack swore. He had half a mind to run out and drag them back, but had more important things to do. Like take a crap.

Ten minutes later, he was running into Rhys’ office. Rhys looked startled and then terrified as Jack bounded on him, falling to his knees and collapsing into Rhys’ lap.

“Rhysie! It’s finally happening! I’m dying!”

Rhys frowned. “What?”

“My… My poop! It was bleeding!” Jack hung his head, letting it squish into Rhys. “I know those kids scared me, but they couldn’t have scared me so bad that I started bleeding internally!”

Rhys rested his hands on Jack’s back and began to rub and knead gently. “Jack, what on earth are you talking about? You couldn’t bleed just cause they startled you.” Rhys thought for a moment. “Well, you had some of that Red Velvet cake, right?”

Jack nodded. “It was delicious. I’d never had it before, so I went back for seconds when I woke up at two in the frickin’ morning.”

Rhys’ shoulders began to shake. “Jack… The thing about that cake is that the red dye… Also dyes your poop.”

Jack’s head shot up. “What!?”

Rhys was sheepish. “I’m sorry, I thought you knew.”

Jack reached up and pulled Rhys’ face to him to kiss him. “Oh, holy shit, that was scary!”

Rhys laughed. “So… They actually scared the Master of Fear?”

Grunting, Jack kissed Rhys some more. “It wasn’t like I pissed myself, but yeah, they got me. I’d be mad, except that was gutsy and clever.” He stopped suddenly and glared at Rhys. “Wait, you knew?”

Rhys shrugged. “They did have lunch in my office while they waited for you to finish your meeting.”

Jack glared. “You… You betrayed me for the kiddos.”

“They were really cute and excited, I figured I’d let them try, I didn’t think they’d actually pull it off.”

“They are cute aren’t they?” he glared. “Don’t tell them I said that.” He smirked then. “Hey, wanna have a quickie? Since I am down here and all…”

**Author's Note:**

> My tumblr: http://nessiefromspace.tumblr.com/  
> My Borderlands/ fanart tumblr: http://nessiefromink.tumblr.com/


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